The trade fair business of the future is and will remain international, according to a new annual publication from AUMA, the Association of the German Trade Fair Industry. This is one of seven observations in the German trade fair industry, according to the newly published, ‘Trends 2025/2026’.
AUMA also notes that an illustration of growth in the German market is the fact that ,in the first half of 2025, the country hosted almost 200 trade fairs with another 130 trade fairs to come before the end of 2025
The fourth annual edition of AUMA Trends sub-titled ‘Change is our constant companion’ provides an insight into many industry topics varying between challenges, upheaval and opportunities.
The publication also offers an update on the transformation of the industry concerning sustainability with regard to the feasibility of EU directives.
Jörn Holtmeier (pictured), AUMA managing director, said: “Despite crises, cost pressure and competition: in the midst of global upheaval, the German trade fair industry is proving that trade fairs will remain central places for economic exchange and the joint shaping of markets in the future. In a transforming world, trade fairs offer stability, trust and innovation. Genuine encounters, openness and global exchange are the key to the future of Germany as a trade fair centre.”
Key figures for the first half up
AUMA’s new figures of 192 trade fairs held in Germany in the first half of 2025 show a slight increase compared to the respective previous events. The number of exhibiting companies rose by almost one percent (to over 116,000), the number of visitors by more than three percent (to almost 7.m) and the amount of stand space rented by almost two percent (to more than 4.2msqm). Trade fairs in the fields of security and disaster control, medical technology and the construction sector have developed particularly positively.
At least 117 trade fairs are scheduled for the second half of the year – led by the world’s largest trade fair for interactive games, Gamescom (20-24 August) in Cologne, and for motorhomes, the Caravan Salon (29 August-7 September) in Düsseldorf. As of today, 309 trade fairs are scheduled to take place throughout the year – more than a dozen of which are new events.
Trade fairs in Germany secure more than 230,000 jobs. No fewer than 70 exhibition venues between the North Sea and Lake Constance make Germany unique in the world of trade fairs. Two-thirds of all leading trade fairs in the global economy take place in this country.
